Surgery and hospitalization with food allergies?

[gufyduck]

Has anyone been through being hospitalized or having a hospitalized family member with food allergies?  I have to have surgery soon and I have been told to plan for at least one night in the hospital.  Just thinking this through on the food allergy front, since I know I won't be fully with it after to be my usual self advocate.

[hezzier]

My son spent one night in the hospital due to illness not surgery, we brought dinner into the hospital since they were not restricting his diet.  He ordered eggs and bacon in the morning after we confirmed they were safe.  My husband and I switched out ever couple hours during the day and then I spent the night with him.

If you aren't being restricted with what you can eat and don't trust the kitchen, bring some shelf stable food with you.

[rebekahc]

Our experience over several hospital overnights between 3 of us with LTFA has been that they overestimate their ability to feed us safely and their dieticians may be fine when dealing with low-sodium or diabetic diets, but are clueless WRT food allergies. Our very worst hospital experience was when DS was about 2 and in the ER for mystery anaphylaxis - several known allergens at the time including milk, eggs and peanuts. They didn't have any liquid pred and their solution was to offer to give him a pill in a spoonful of pudding.  After I pointed out that pudding has milk, they offered to put it in a spoonful of peanut butter instead. 

It's not much better with drug allergies. Twice we've been given anaphylaxis in the hospital because they chose to not believe us and administer drugs we said we were allergic to.  One of those times, DS had to be admitted for 4 days on oxygen and respiratory therapy due to the reaction. The other, the doctor joked with me, 'well, if I had believed you were allergic I wouldn't have given you that medicine.  I guess the best place to have anaphylaxis is the OR since you'll be intubated anyway!'  (I was in pre-op at the time)

So, those bad experiences shouldn't scare you - just make sure you're cautious and have someone there who can watch your back if you're out if it and can bring you food if necessary.

[PurpleCat]

I agree!  I am always shocked and surprised that a hospital food and beverage operation is clueless with food allergies.  Some nurses are pretty uneducated as well.  Guard up, all times, trust no one!

[eragon]

bring own food or ask family to feed you.
hospital food has been very risky in our experience.

[gufyduck]

  Definitely not what I wanted to hear, but glad I know to be prepared!

[spacecanada]

Allergic Living wrote an article on this, but I'm not entirely sure their 'steps to take' would actually work in most hospitals, as there is often a significant disconnect between the medical staff and food services staff, and lack of food allergy training in most cases.
https://www.allergicliving.com/2018/09/19/food-allergies-and-hospitals-how-to-be-a-proactive-patient/

I also echo to be prepared to bring your own food.  I wouldn't trust hospital food, and have heard too many bad experiences with my own family members having reactions to hospital food. 

[Janelle205]

In the past year I was in the hospital for DD's birth and for a week (unexpectedly) for critically low potassium.

If you don't have someone that can bring you food, I'd pack enough that you can sustain yourself, especially if you have non-top 8 allergies.

I was able to eat a few specific things.  It didn't often add up to a normal meal, but luckily I was ok with that.  I could get things like a plain bagel with cream cheese, a baked potato, an orange or grapes, pudding, cottage cheese.  They let me order broth from the soft food menu, and with some plain pasta and a plain grilled chicken breast I made a sort-of passable chicken noodle soup.  (I was honestly surprised their broth was safe for a soy allergy though.)

[Ciel]

I have had a totally different experience. I was hospitalized for 4 weeks at one hospital and 12 weeks at another hospital and both places were able to provide me with safe meals. The kitchens at both hospitals were completely peanut & tree nut free, and shellfish are too expensive to be on a hospital menu. They had a gluten-free area of the kitchen where they were able to make me vegetables, fish, rice, salad, gf pasta, etc. Someone with milk/egg allergies would have a harder time than I did, I would think. Or someone with a less common allergy. I had my own snacks stash when I could get them, and I went hungry sometimes but I was much better off than I had expected.